Deep Tracks: Bon Jovi – Miss Fourth of July

Miss Fourth of July

Yes, that is an accordion that David Bryan is playing. This may not sound like a typical instrument for a rock band, but this song is great. It is a soulful lamentation on the past and how, as things change, we are forced to realize that much of what we used to see or believe is nothing but an illusion. Despite that traditional accordion sound that fits this dirge perfectly, it does have an excellent solo by Sambora and strong drum work by Tico Torres. The speaker is older and is struggling to come to terms with the past. His love, Miss Fourth of July, has not turned out to be what he expected. Her name suggests a beauty queen but the illusion of love and beauty are destroyed, “So we wave goodbye to Miss Fourth of July / The queen of the roses has left us with nothing but thorns / Don’t say we never tried, Miss Fourth of July / The stars that we reached for has left us with nothing but dawn.” We are all idealistic in our youth – we believe that life and love will always go as we planned. Eventually the hard reality of life has to set in and we need to confront the past and move on, “I used to live, but now I survive / I used to believe, but now it’s just one day at a time.” Harsh? Yes, but it happens to all of us and we need to learn to live life on our own terms and deal with what it gives us.